Emotional competence predicts outcome of an inpatient treatment program for burnout

Previous research has shown an association between burnout and low emotional competence (EC), defined as the ability to adequately regulate the intensity and expression of emotions. EC might also play a maintaining role in depression. The current paper aimed at studying the effect of improved EC on the course of burnout and depression.

113 psychiatric inpatients completed a set of standardized self-report questionnaires at intake, discharge and three months after treatment, assessing EC, burnout, and depression. Multi-level analyses investigated the effect of improved EC on burnout and depression.

Improved EC including a better emotion regulation during treatment predicted favourable treatment outcomes regarding burnout and depression symptoms.

The present results should be considered in light of some methodological limitations. Most importantly, the patient sample consists of patients of one inpatient ward and is therefore not representative of all burnout patients.

This study supports EC as a putative mechanism of change in the multimodal treatment of inpatients with a stress-related depressive disorder and burnout. Clinical and research consequences of the findings will be discussed.